Just Like Home

“Most showrooms display their fabrics along walls in a neutral atmosphere, but at Pierre Frey we try to create the environment in which our products will be used,” says Patrick Frey, chairman and creative director of the storied 77-year-old French ...

“Most showrooms display their fabrics along walls in a neutral atmosphere, but at Pierre Frey we try to create the environment in which our products will be used,” says Patrick Frey, chairman and creative director of the storied 77-year-old French fabric house. Recently the firm undertook a complete transformation of its U.S. flagship location in Manhattan’s Decoration & Design Building. What was formerly a fairly conventional presentation of Pierre Frey’s distinctive textiles and wallpapers has been refashioned as a charmingly chic Parisian apartment setting. The American luxury furniture company Hutton Home has provided chairs, sofas, and ottomans to showcase the brand’s fabrics, as well as complementary lighting and case goods.

The collaboration with Hutton Home—the first time Pierre Frey has brought an outside brand into its New York showroom—was a natural way to introduce a sense of warmth and an authentic residential feel to the 3,000-square-foot space. “Hutton Home has the same commitment to quality and design integrity that we do,” Frey says, “with a complementary range of modern and classic styles.”

Most of the Hutton Home pieces are clad in neutral-tone Pierre Frey fabrics, allowing the French company’s signature vibrant patterns displayed throughout the space to stand out. For example, a tufted Crosby sofa from Hutton Home’s Ensemble collection is covered in Pierre Frey’s subtle cream Bronx wool blend, while a pair of Cupidon petite slipper chairs, with cerused-white-oak frames and French nailhead trim, are smartly upholstered in beige Fontainebleau Carreaux silk checks. Graceful window treatments, made out of Pierre Frey’s Paros linens, complete the look.

Hutton Home president Douglas Hutton believes the collaboration makes perfect sense for both companies. “Successful interior design is about achieving a complete vision,” he says. “Patrick Frey’s textile selections were an inspiration. The fact that this showroom has one design vision for the fabrics and one for the furnishings makes it very comfortable—both literally and visually.”

Hutton Home furnishings (huttonhome.com) and Pierre Frey fabrics and wallpapers are available to the trade through Pierre Frey’s New York showroom in the Decoration & Design Building (979 Third Ave., Suite 1611; 212-421-0534; pierrefrey.com).